House of Blue Light

Today I was forced to make a tripp to Dunoon, I set off and headed for Western Ferries at Mc Inroys Point In Gourock. Camera in hand I left the car deck to shoot the beauty that is the rive in a day like today from the water. Imagine my frustration when the camera blipped, NO MEMORY CARD!!! I was livid with myself for being such a fool. I enjoyed the vistas as the ferry made way across the river and on arriving I set off to find a shop to buy a memory card for the return trip, successfully I am glad to say. One of my friends loves lighthouses, so I knew the shot for the day, an indulgence to lift the spirits, a little piece of our river wending its way to give a smile I hope. The beautiful blues of sea and sky and the heat haze make this an example of the utterly breathtaking beauty of the West of Scotland.

The Cloch Lighthouse is on the east shore of the Firth of Clyde, directly opposite Dunoon. Designed by Thomas Smith, with Stevenson, and built in 1797. The original light was illuminated by acetylene, while the dioptric and catadioptric lenses floated in baths of mercury, and were rotated by a clockwork mechanism powered by falling weights, which the keeper would hand wind to the top of the tower each time they ran down. This operation had to be repeated every two to three hours depending on the system, and could not be missed or the rotation would stop, rendering the light useless. The keeper also had to ensure the burners and fuel supply were operational, and maintain the lenses and windows, keeping them clear of any internal or external contamination.


A white tower with a black band, 76 feet high with the focal plane 76 feet above High Water, showing a white single flashing light having the characteristic of 1 flash every 5 seconds. The effective intensity of the light is about 40,000 candlepower and the geographical range in clear weather is 14 miles.

A siren foghorn operated by compressed air, furnished by engines of about 30HP, the signal comprising two 1½ second blasts every 50 seconds. The Cloch also featured a talking beacon in its past. The Clyde Lighthouses were the first authority of the kind to establish talking beacons. This instrument was a sensational novelty in its period. The device is quite simple in its application. A transmitter sends out from an ordinary gramophone disc the name and position of the lighthouse and then counts up to thirty in measured terms. A ship coming into the Clyde can thus get a bearing through its own instruments, even in fog. It is likely that the 'talking beacon' will be supplanted by apparatus of a still more advanced kind, and in fact these wireless signals from Cumbrae and Cloch - for Toward is not so equipped - are now used mostly for calibrating the navigational devices of new ships on their trials, but it was one of the notable contributions of the Stevenson family to safe navigation.

The Cloch light is now fully automated and unmanned. At some time, believed to be during the 1990s, the main light was closed down and replaced by an optic mounted on a pole just outside the lantern. The light continues to flash with the same character, but is of restricted range - from the other side of the firth it is hard to distinguish it from adjacent street lights.

Please enjoy and best in Large I suspect